Human migration

A van with illegal migrants was stopped on "Trakia" highway at the entrance of Sofia to the ring road.

When stopped for inspection, about 30 men, foreign citizens, without documents were found in it. They are in good condition, as they claim to be citizens of Afghanistan, it became clear from information of "Focus" from the Sofia Police.

Germany wants to lower its citizenship requirements following the example of France, the government announced, continuing its reform program to tackle labor shortages, EURACTIV reported.

German citizenship law has long been known for being particularly restrictive.

Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya has said his ministry will strengthen measures and inspection against irregular migration across the country when the deportation center in Istanbul will be put into service on Oct. 1.

Migration Minister Dimitris Keridis said he learned "with great sadness of the deaths of at least 18 migrants in the fire in the Dadia forest."

Eighteen burned bodies were found on Tuesday in a rural area in the northeast of the country where wildfires have been burning out of control for a fourth day.

Greek authorities foiled the illegal entry of 2,720 undocumented migrants into the country between August 14 and 17, as announced on Sunday.

During the same time frame, police apprehended 85 undocumented migrants, as stated in the same announcement.

The Turkish Statistical Institute (TÜİK) unveiled the internal migration figures for the year 2022, revealing that a staggering 2.7 million citizens migrated between provinces within the country.

The annual migration rate, which has exhibited a fluctuating trajectory over the years, reached 3.27 percent in 2022, up from 3.18 percent during the 2007-2008 period.

The Turkish Interior Ministry has confirmed its collaboration with the U.K. to tackle illegal migration, stressing the agreement on intelligence sharing, particularly in combating migrant smugglers and addressing this mechanism.

Slovenian passport holders can travel visa-free to 183 destinations around the globe, which ranks the country 9th on the latest Global Passport Power Rank.

Slovenia has climbed a spot for the second year in a row and is now tied with Latvia and Slovakia on the list, which is compiled by Henley & Partners, a London-based consultancy.

The intensified work to combat the illegal trafficking of migrants has achieved results in the past two months, reports the Ministry of the Interior. After the operations ordered by the Minister of the Interior, Kalin Stoyanov, to counteract the flow of migrants passing through Bulgaria, only for the period June 1 - July 31, 46,940 attempts to cross the Bulgarian-Turkish border were prevented.

China will allow some foreigners to obtain visas on arrival and rural residents to settle more easily in cities as part of a series of measures aimed at boosting its flagging economy.

The relaxations aim to "promote the free movement" of "people, vehicles, information and data", an official from the Ministry of Public Security said.